... her child and most likely did not wish to drown it, but due to the pressures of religion, she felt the deed was necessary. There is another fish to infant metaphor and religious allusion as the infant is portrayed as "a minnow with hooks". In line twelve, the last line of the third stanza, Heaney says the infant was " ... ...

• Word Count: 1097
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate